-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Scientists studying the carcass of what they call the heaviest squid ever found have discovered it has eyes as big as soccer balls -- reportedly the largest in the world .

Scientists are interviewed while two colossal squids are defrosted . The one on the right is missing part of its body .

The colossal squid 's eyes were measured at about 27 centimeters -LRB- 10.8 inches -RRB- across by researchers , who have been defrosting it and a smaller specimen at Te Papa , the national museum of New Zealand .

`` This is the only intact eye -LRB- of a colossal squid -RRB- that 's ever been found . It 's spectacular , '' squid specialist Kat Bolstad of the Auckland University of Technology told The Associated Press on Wednesday .

Bolstad , one of a team of international scientists brought in to examine the creature , added : `` It 's the largest known eye in the animal kingdom . ''

His assertion was backed up by Swedish professor Eric Warrant of the University of Lund , who specializes in vision in invertebrates .

`` This is the largest eye ever recorded in history and studied , '' Warrant told AP . `` It has a huge lens the size of an orange and captures an awful lot of light in the dark depths in which it hunts . ''

Scientists snaked a camera into the colossal squid 's body and measured its beak and tentacles in an exam broadcast live on the Internet .

`` It did n't seem really fair that only a handful of people would get to see an animal like this up close , '' said Steve O'Shea , a marine biologist at the Auckland University of Technology .

He led a team that examined the corps of the colossal squid on Monday , Tuesday and Wednesday in a lab at Wellington 's Te Papa .

`` It 's the end of three days without much sleep , '' O'Shea told CNN . `` It 's been an exhausting exercise . ''

Blog dispatches from the lab provided updates -LRB- `` They 're going to rotate the Squid ! '' -RRB- peppered with commentary -LRB- `` anything with lots of legs/tentacles gives me the willies but if it 's here -- and not moving is a plus in my book -- you have to touch ! '' -RRB-

A New Zealand fishing boat snagged the squid in February 2007 , as it sought toothfish in the Antarctic waters of the Ross Sea . The crew hauled in a line with many baited hooks and discovered a massive squid feasting on one of the hooked fish , the museum says on its Web site .

Researchers determined it was a colossal squid , a species first documented in 2003 that tends to weigh more than the also-big giant squid .

The larger colossal squid that scientists examined this week weighed 1,091 pounds -LRB- 495 kilograms -RRB- and measured about 32 feet -LRB- 10 meters -RRB- , the museum said .

`` We probably have more questions than we have answers now , '' O'Shea said just after completing the exam .

Yet the team made at least one key finding .

When they measured the colossal squid 's beak , O'Shea said , they were stunned to discover that it was shorter than colossal-squid beaks recovered from the stomachs of sperm whales , which prey on squid .

That led O'Shea to conclude that even heavier colossal squid lurk somewhere below the surface , unseen by human eyes .

`` They grow considerably larger , '' he said . E-mail to a friend

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Researchers defrosting two colossal squid at New Zealand 's national museum

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The larger one has eyes around 27 cm across , believed to be world 's biggest

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It weighs almost half a tonne and measures about 32 feet -LRB- 10 meters -RRB- in length

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Scientists believe that there may be even larger colossal squids in existence